The Hanceville City Council on Thursday night reversed its earlier decision, voting instead to reopen the city pool. (W.C. Mann for The Tribune)
HANCEVILLE – On Thursday evening, the Hanceville City Council reversed gears on its plan to close the city pool at C.W. Day Park, voting instead to reopen the facility. The council voted in January to close the pool due to concern over financial losses (the pool lost more than $35,000 in 2017) and the apparent accumulation of potentially dangerous black mold in the pool.
The City had at first looked at plans to fill in the pool and install a splash pad on the site, with a proposed cost of around $65,000, less than the $75,000 estimated cost of repair to the pool. Council members backtracked, though, when splash pad estimates proved to be far too low.
When Mayor Kenneth Nail had a representative of Burleson Pool Co., Inc. in Huntsville come down and look at the pool, the expert determined that the pool suffered not from black mold, but from more easily treatable black algae. The company estimated that the pool could be treated and restored to readiness to swim for only $4,800.
With assurances from the company representative, who spoke to the council live via conference call, that the $4,800 amount plus the cost of water for a refill would make the pool ready to use, the council voted unanimously to reopen the pool and contract with Burleson Pool for the necessary treatment.
The council did not announce a specific date for reopening the pool.
TAP grant
The council also approved a resolution to seek a state Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) grant to improve sidewalks along Alabama Highway 91 and Church Street, and to improve pedestrian crossings at the US Highway 31/Alabama Highway 91 intersection. Citing the needs of local residents and the role that better sidewalks could play in downtown revitalization, the council voted to seek an 80/20 grant to cover a proposed project coat of $162,652.33 with the City putting up a $32, 530.47 cash match to cover 20 percent of the project cost.
Free pantry
Cheyanne Campbell came forward during the public comments portion of the meeting and asked the council’s opinion on the idea of location a free take-or-leave food pantry in Hanceville, similar to the pantry located near Mary Carter Hardware in downtown Cullman (See www.cullmantribune.com/articles/2017/01/17/little-free-pantry-coming-cullman). Members received the idea well, voting to support Campbell’s plan, and recommending that the pantry be located behind the library, where it would be accessible to parking and within sight of the police station. The council even voted to commit $250 toward the cost of materials for the project.
The Hanceville City Council meets on the second and fourth Thursdays of each month, at 6:30 p.m. in the Hanceville City Hall auditorium, with work session at 6. The public is invited to attend.
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